


Cars

by LeesaPerrie



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Angst, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-10-26
Updated: 2008-10-26
Packaged: 2018-12-17 17:53:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11856642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeesaPerrie/pseuds/LeesaPerrie
Summary: Two men with two different childhoods, and yet in some ways, not that far apart. Based on photos for The Prodigal.





	Cars

**Cars  
By Leesa Perrie**

Two radio controlled cars speed down the hallway, a rematch for their interrupted race of the week before. Two grown men, military commander and head of science, playing like overgrown kids. It's part of their charm, they would say if challenged. And a really cool way to relax, one would add.

Not that anyone would bother to challenge them. Not even Woolsey. Childish though it might seem to him, he understands the need to kick back and relax, even if he wishes they'd be more mature and civilised about it.

The race is on, as yellow car gets the lead, again, and beats the yellow and red flamed one, though not by much. 

Sheppard scowls. McKay crows. 

They race again. And again.

This is fun.

\-------------

When John was ten, his parents bought him a radio controlled car for his birthday, after he had gone on and on and on about it for weeks before. It was cool and fast and fun to drive, but he had no one to race against. Dave thought it was stupid, he certainly didn't want a car of his own, let alone to race John's. But then, Dave was weird sometimes.

There were other kids from time to time; cousins, children of his parent's friends or influential contacts, but being home schooled by a paid tutor didn't work well for socialising. Not when his parents wouldn't let him mix with people below their wealthy status.

Of course, not one of those other kids brought a car with them when visiting, and no amount of begging for a second car he could lend them got him anywhere with his parents. He had one, he didn't need another and besides, they believed there were far better toys for him to play with.

So he built the car an obstacle course and convinced himself that it was more fun this way.

He never really believed it, though.

\-------------

When Rodney was ten, he built himself a radio controlled car from an old battered toy and second hand electronics. He was proud of his accomplishment, even if it didn't look new and shiny and wasn't all that fast, and couldn't take corners all that well. It was his, made with his own hands, with his own intelligence, and that was all that mattered.

He wished he could race it with someone else, but knew it would never win. Besides, Jimmy had gone to Winnipeg, his father taking a new job there, and no one else in Rodney's class liked him. 

The kids that lived on his street weren't any better, either.

So he turned his attention to making another car; a better, faster car. And another and another, until he'd built the best radio controlled car that he could.

He still had no one to race it against, so he built himself a course with obstacles to avoid and told himself it was enough. It was fun. And he'd made it all by himself, which was more than most kids could do. 

But deep inside he knew it wasn't as much fun as if he had a friend to race against, and in the end he abandoned the car and moved on to other things, other projects, other toys.

\-------------

Two radio controlled cars speed down the hallway.

Two grown boys. 

Two dreams come true.

The End


End file.
